Journalism Innovator in Residence, Anita Li receives King Charles III Coronation Medal
On a Tuesday afternoon in December, Anita Li received an email in her inbox with the subject line: “King Charles III Coronation Medal” from Senator Andrew Cardozo.
For a moment, she didn’t understand what it meant. She didn’t even know she had been nominated for a medal. But upon reading the brief email from Senator Cardozo and the enclosed PDF detailing the recognition, Li was, as she put it, “floored.”
“I just stared at my laptop screen for a while,” said Li. When the initial shock wore off, she immediately told her husband and forwarded the email with good news to her parents.
The King Charles III Coronation Medal commemorates the Coronation of His Majesty King Charles III as King of Canada and is awarded to those who are deemed to have made a significant contribution to Canada.
Senator Cardozo had awarded Li with the medal for her “Notable contributions to Canada through your dedication to community-driven journalism and media innovation.”
Li is a visiting journalist and Journalism Innovator in Residence at TMU. She is also the editor-in-chief of The Green Line, a hyper-local digital publication in Toronto.
Li was invited to two ceremonies in late February and early March to be awarded the medal alongside fellow recipients. The first ceremony took place in Ottawa at the Senate of Canada Building. As she entered, her husband and in-laws accompanying her to the prestigious event, she couldn’t help but be taken by the architectural beauty: maple leaf motifs, high ceilings and sun-drenched red carpets and wooden doors.
“You feel very proud to be Canadian when you're in this space,” Li said.
As she was led to her seat in a small chamber, she couldn’t stop smiling. There was a hushed silence over the recipients and their families but the room filled with unmistakable excitement. One by one, those who received the medal were called up to shake the hand of Senator Cardozo and the Usher of the Black Rod.
“Everybody’s in such good spirits because you’re getting this incredible honor. And the people in the room [were] so lovely and humble,” she said.
The second recognition ceremony took place at Toronto City Hall in one of the committee rooms. The ceremony was more relaxed than the one in Ottawa, with a fewer number of people, but to her, it felt just as significant. Li got to bring her mom with her, who was over the moon about the achievement.
After the ceremony, Li and her family celebrated over dinner. At one point, her husband told a server that Li got a medal from the king.
“It sounds like it's a huge honour but also sounds hilarious in a lot of ways because it feels very over the top,” she said. Nonetheless, it was an incredibly significant moment in her career.
An official letter from the Senator’s office called Li a “pioneer and leader in online media.”
“I'm really speechless and getting emotional even just thinking about it,” Li said.
For Li, the award was unexpected and not something she had been chasing after. Instead, it was a “cherry on top” to be recognized in such a way—and a spark of hope for the future of the industry.
“I’m actually quite optimistic about the future of journalism, especially in this country,” Li said. “And I think it's really important to recognize efforts that are effective and innovative and actually serve the community in a genuine, authentic way.”
Li said it takes a village to get to where she is today—she thanked her family, friends and people from the industry for all their support. Li gave a special shoutout to Julia Lawrence, a 2024 graduate of the J-School program, as a “day one” with her Green Line project.
To current J-School students, Li hoped her medal would serve as a reinforcement for the work and dedication they show.
“It's possible to blaze your own trail and also just follow a path that you really believe in,” she said.
From the J-School’s faculty, staff, and students: congratulations, Anita, on your remarkable achievement.
